Lewis Hamilton’s 5th-to-2nd recovery in Montreal nudged him ahead of Lando Norris in the 2026 ‘Best average positions gained’ ranking. Max Verstappen remains comfortably clear at the top after five rounds, even with only small movement elsewhere.
By Nadia Okafor
Lewis Hamilton’s Canadian Grand Prix was a clean example of what this ranking rewards: turning grid loss into race-day gain. Starting 5th and finishing 2nd over 68 laps at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Hamilton banked a three-place improvement that helped lift his season average to +1.20 positions gained per counted race, moving him from 3rd to 2nd in the standings. In a table where the biggest movement this week was only one position, that step mattered — it came at the direct expense of Lando Norris.
Norris’ drop from 2nd to 3rd is the other side of the same calculation. He began the Canadian GP 3rd but was classified as Retired after 38 laps, a result that drags his average down to +1.00 and costs him a place in the ranking despite still being in positive territory overall. The contrast between Hamilton’s three-place climb and Norris’ Canada swing is stark: one solid recovery can be enough to flip a close battle when averages are this tight early in the year.
At the front, the headline remains consistency: Max Verstappen still leads with a hefty +4.25 average, and Canada did nothing to loosen that grip. He started 6th and finished 3rd in Montreal — another three places gained — and with the top three unchanged as a set, the story is less about a changing hierarchy and more about Verstappen consolidating an already sizeable buffer as the ranking’s early-season streak continues.
Behind the podium places in the ranking, Ferrari doubled its progress as Charles Leclerc edged up from 6th to 5th on +0.20. It’s only a single spot, but with no new entries or exits in the upper group this week, these incremental steps are currently the only way to reshape the table — and they underline how quickly one outlier result can re-order the runners just outside the lead.
| Driver | Team | Before | After | Δ | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 3 | 2 | +1 | +1.20 |
| Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 6 | 5 | +1 | +0.20 |
| Lando Norris | McLaren | 2 | 3 | -1 | +1.00 |
Hamilton has positioned himself as Verstappen’s closest current challenger on average positions gained, but the gap to +4.25 remains large. The more immediate pressure point is behind: Norris is now within striking distance of regaining P2 with a single strong recovery, while Leclerc’s small rise shows how little separation there is in the next group.